where's mentalo man when he's needed?

After talking last time about a couple of my favorite models from the SS '08 season, I began to think more and more about which girls will be the stars of SS '09. Since I'm hopelessly removed from the fashion world and all its workings, I won't bother to make any predictions (this is where the Mentalo Man would have come in handy...), but I will dedicate a little space to some particularly exciting faces that I'd love to see blow up (not literally). The first being Tara Gill.












She's amazing and I don't want to hear otherwise! My tastes are predictable, though. When it comes to models, two types of features tend to win me over instantly-- Scandinavian (par exemple, Kim Noorda, Adina Fohlin, and Elsa Sylvan) and native (American or otherwise). Tara exemplifies the latter. She's a native Canadian blessed with sharp eyes, strong bone structure, and soft lips that add up to one stunning and very striking whole. FW '08-'09 was a fairly good season for her-- she walked for Emanuel Ungaro (pictured) and Kenzo, among others-- but the runways need more Tara. Get on that, fashion gods... and while you're at it, could you help out Yekaterina Simakova?












Yekaterina (AKA Sima) hasn't been seen on the runway except for at Zucca SS '08, and it's probable that she's taking her career one step at a time while she's in school. I sincerely hope she goes full-time soon, though! She has an interesting look overall, with cool Thom Yorke-ish eyes and super pretty strawberry-blonde hair (usually anyway).

Also on my radar is an adorable Brit named Alexina Graham. She hasn't had loads of runway experience yet and it showed during her few outings at FW '08-'09, but I'm willing to bet she'll be far more confident on the catwalk in the coming season. I'm pulling for her because, well, look at that face! So cute, and red hair never hurts either...













Finally, a few more girls I hope will have a stellar season; in no particular order.

1) Arlenis! Miss Bright & Shiny.
2) Pernille Moehler, she of the weirdly cool angles.
3) Alice Burdeu-- not exactly a newbie, but hasn't reached her full potential just yet. The new haircut should do the trick!
4) Heloise Guerin. Awesome hair, and even more amazing on the runway than in print.
5) Toni Garnn-- again, not doing too shabby (shabbily?) but I'm including her anyway. Flat-out gorgeous with a face that takes to makeup perfectly.
6) Pilar Solchaga... sweet, fascinating, and a little bit dark. Comes complete with Bambi eyes.
7) Lyoka Tyagnereva-- she's certainly been gaining momentum lately! I wouldn't mind seeing her here there and everywhere...
8) Sigrid Agren. Blonde hair and dark brown eyes pair up verrrry nicely, here's your proof.
9) Olivia O'Driscoll. Lovely girl, what more can I say!
10) Jenny Albright-- gorgeous skin tone and had a tidily successful Resort season. Good things in store.

xx

{image credits: DNA Models, frillr.com, Jalouse February 2008, and Ford Models}